Lenovo Sensei

[buddinggeek]

Il try to vote multiple time mine is a dynamic IP address

[Maliha Community Moderator]

I'll ask my friends to vote too 

[Boddaker]

Work continues on the base.  

Transferring the contours from the A700 to the new base using tape.  I put a piece of tape over the raised edge and carefully cut around it, then stuck the negative part of the tape to the new base.


Then removed material following the tape line.  Cutting then filing.


cut and filed.


Now let's bring it in for a test fit.  Not bad!


Next was to get the lens glued in.  I cut a hole for the projector to shine through, and glued in a block for it to sit on, so the lower part sits flush with the bottom front piece.


I also added reinforcements to the corners.


An overall shot of the base so far.


Back shot of the lens.  You can see the extra block I put under the lens.


It's coming along, but I still have a lot to do!  Still gotta glue in the removable drive pocket and cut the hole for it, make a stand for the projector and figure out how to secure it to the base, round the edges, and cut holes for the power and ethernet extensions.  Then paint it!  Gonna be a long weekend lol.

[Boddaker]

Well, my luck just goes from bad to worse.  Came down with the flu thursday night and couldn't do a **bleep** thing but lie comatose in bed 'til this morning.  Finally forced myself into the garage (pounding head and all) to try and get some work done on this thing.  So please forgive me if this update seems a bit terse.  I just want to post and get back in bed lol.

Made this to mount the projector in to the base.



Fastened to projector.


Mounted to the base.


Front shot.


Side shot.


Placement of removable drive pocket.


Gluing.


Routing.


Routed.


Will clean up edges more when I sand/prime for paint.  Ok off to bed.  G'nite!

[JaneL Community SuperMod]

Sorry to hear you're ill, and hope you feel better soon and are able to get back on track!

[Boddaker]

Thank you Jane.  I'm feeling much better today!

Managed to get some more work done yesterday.  One thing I hadn't thought of until now was case feet.  Not time to get anything cool, so I went to Lowes and found these.


Sensei has shoes!


Another big hurdle with this project was getting the new base mounted to the A700.  I'm happy to say that I finally got that ironed out.  I first thought a piano hinge would be perfect for this, and would ease assembly, but there were no simple means of attaching it to the A700.  So an alternate hinge system was developed.  While I was at Lowes getting case feet, I happened across these 4" gate hinges that possess the reach I need.


...at least on one end.  The other end that attaches to the base was easily cut off to match the height of the acrylic.


New holes were drilled in the hinges, and 6-32 case screws were used to secure them to the lcd framework.


Now we can finally get a glimpse of Sensei in it's correct orientation!






If all goes well, I can paint the base tonight.  Should be getting the fins today as well.  Could there actually be a light at the end of the tunnel?  Or is that just a freight train headin' my way?  lol

[Boddaker]

Hey guys, I haven't abandoned this project.  In fact, I will be finishing it up this week.  Yes, the contest deadline was the 15th, and needless to say I lost lol.  However, Lenovo still wants to showcase my Sensei mod at CES along with the others.  So I've been diligently working to get it finalized and ready to ship to Las Vegas in time for the show.

Ok so how bout an update?

Well, it's not so much an update as it is a teaser.  Full update will follow in the next day or so...

[Boddaker]

The last little bits are falling into place. 

Had to supplement the A700's exhaust venting, since my new base pretty much enclosed the factory outlet.  Here's how it originally exited the unit.  The back cover had a matching opening over the black grill area.  But now the hot air would just be blowing into the base.


So an air duct would have to be made to direct the hot air towards the fins and out.  So I mocked it up with some construction paper and transferred its shape to some roof flashing and cut it out.



Finished piece.


Finished piece fastened to the A700.


This, in addition to a separate heat shield I'm making to go over the projector, should help keep the temps at an acceptable level inside the base.

[Boddaker]

So how does one paint something in 40º wet rainy weather and no paint booth?  Answer:  hang some plastic sheeting around a space heater and a heat lamp!


Here's the base taped off and hanging, ready to prime.


After a couple coats of black primer.


Shooting the gloss coat after wet-sanding with 400 grit.



Got the base mounted to the A700 this morning and did a smoke test.


An iris-downed shot of the projected image.  It's a bit blurry because the Sensei is sitting too close to the wall and it won't focus that close.  Also, the date's wrong (should be today).


I'll post up final pics later today.  'til then!  

[Boddaker]

Brought Sensei in to the conference room at my work place to take final shots.  Enjoy!

I'd like to thank everyone who helped me throughout this project: Moddersmart, Crucial, Pacific Waterjet, and especially to Lenovo for having the contest and providing me with one of their cool products to mod!